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Beef Jerky in the smoker

Posted on 6/22/25 at 8:45 am
Posted by gumbo2176
Member since May 2018
19313 posts
Posted on 6/22/25 at 8:45 am
Got a nice size eye of round yesterday, minimal trimming needed and sliced it into 45 pieces about 3/16" thick, seasoned them well and in the fridge it went overnight.

Got up a couple times to toss it to make sure the seasoning evenly coated the meat and just got them in my big homemade smoker to finish them off.

If all goes well, they should start coming off around an hour into the LSU game today.

Sure beats paying for it in the stores already made, but you pay for the convenience of not having to do it yourself.

Posted by LPLGTiger
Member since May 2013
2565 posts
Posted on 6/22/25 at 8:48 am to
I’ve been thinking about doing jerky on a smoker. Keep us updated on how it goes. What temp do you have it at?
Posted by gumbo2176
Member since May 2018
19313 posts
Posted on 6/22/25 at 8:57 am to
quote:

I’ve been thinking about doing jerky on a smoker. Keep us updated on how it goes. What temp do you have it at?


Do it man, it's easy as hell. You can even do it on a dehydrator if you don't have a smoker, but it will lack the smoke taste unless you use a bit of liquid smoke, but I'm not fond of the taste of it.

I have it at 160 right now using the snake method of lining my pan with a double row of coals and letting them burn for a few hours time. As for the smoke, I have one of those nice stainless steel mazes that will give off smoke for up to 5 hours when using the pellets as fuel.

I had a choice between hickory or pecan and went with the pecan pellets today.
Posted by Roscoe14
Member since Jul 2021
348 posts
Posted on 6/23/25 at 4:43 pm to
And how long do you smoke it for?
Posted by deeprig9
Unincorporated Ozora
Member since Sep 2012
72922 posts
Posted on 6/23/25 at 4:57 pm to
Spices and marinades used and pictures would make this a wonderful topic.
Posted by gumbo2176
Member since May 2018
19313 posts
Posted on 6/23/25 at 5:16 pm to
quote:

Spices and marinades used and pictures would make this a wonderful topic.



Spices used are as follows:

Slap Ya Mama
Black Pepper
Garlic Powder
Cumin
Smoked Paprika
Worcestershire Sauce
Soy Sauce
Habanero Sauce----my own blend and homemade

I liberally season the meat on both sides with all the dry seasonings first, then put them in a stainless steel bowl before adding the wet stuff.

Once it's all in the bowl I will mix it up by hand for a few minutes to make sure every piece is evenly seasoned. Then I cover it, put it in a fridge to marinade overnight at a minimum and will get up and toss it a few more times during the night.

Then it's just getting the smoker set up and letting it do its thing.
Posted by deeprig9
Unincorporated Ozora
Member since Sep 2012
72922 posts
Posted on 6/23/25 at 5:20 pm to
quote:

and will get up and toss it a few more times during the night.



If you don't do this, is there much of a difference?

Also, what's the total cook time?
Posted by deeprig9
Unincorporated Ozora
Member since Sep 2012
72922 posts
Posted on 6/23/25 at 5:23 pm to
Also, what brand of charcoal?
Posted by gumbo2176
Member since May 2018
19313 posts
Posted on 6/23/25 at 5:46 pm to
I get up to pee at least 2-3 times a night, so it only takes me a few minutes of my time to do it. The reason I like to do it is there will be a little liquid that forms in the bowl and collects in the bottom and tossing it coats the meat with that bit of liquid.

As for charcoal, I use Kingsford. I will do a snake with 2 coals side by side in my pan around 80% of the perimeter. I will take 5-6 coals and get them lit and burning good before adding them to the beginning of the charcoal snake and they slowly burn around the pan as time goes on.

I do this at 160 F for a couple hours and the heat gradually builds up to about 180 F over time. No set time since it all depends on how thick you slice the meat.

I like it firm, but with a slight bit of bend still in the meat when a little pressure is applied, but well smoked before taking them off. Some folks dry it out so much it's like a piece of plastic and that is not to my liking.
Posted by deeprig9
Unincorporated Ozora
Member since Sep 2012
72922 posts
Posted on 6/23/25 at 5:52 pm to
If I sliced the chuck roast to a quarter inch thick, about how much time are we talking about? 2 hours? 8 hours? Please give me a ballpark figure as a starting point.
Posted by gumbo2176
Member since May 2018
19313 posts
Posted on 6/23/25 at 6:18 pm to
I've never used chuck, but I'm sure it will be fine. I use eye of round roasts and slice it across the grain as I find it makes for a more tender piece of jerky.

I also only slice 3/16 in. thick and as a general rule, it will take 4-5 hours in my smoker to finish to my liking.

That should give you a starting point.
Posted by deeprig9
Unincorporated Ozora
Member since Sep 2012
72922 posts
Posted on 6/23/25 at 6:33 pm to
Thank you sir.
Posted by deeprig9
Unincorporated Ozora
Member since Sep 2012
72922 posts
Posted on 6/23/25 at 6:34 pm to
How do you store it?
Posted by gumbo2176
Member since May 2018
19313 posts
Posted on 6/23/25 at 7:19 pm to
quote:

How do you store it?


I will simply take what I will eat in a week or less and keep it in the fridge after a couple days being on the table.

What I don't plan on eating right away I will vacuum seal it and put it in my freezer and take it out to thaw when I want it. That works out fine for me and I've never had any go bad.
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